'People say speeding doesn't kill but it does' says Beds police officer

PC Sam Sparkes said she had been to hundreds of speeding-related collisions and "I can categorically say it does kill"

A police officer who has to tell people their relative has died on the roads says she still faces resistance to the "speeding kills" message.

PC Sam Sparkes from the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Road Policing Unit, says she gets told "no, it doesn't" all the time.

The Bedfordshire-based officer has been a family liaison officer (FLO) for 20 years.

"Speeding is a choice; the speed limit is a maximum; not a target," she said.

"I've seen first-hand young inexperienced drivers showing off to their friends and killing their friends.

"What sort of friend kills their friends?"

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Since 2021, there have been 296 fatalities and serious injuries on the three counties' roads due to speeding drivers, police said.

PC Sparkes has been with Bedfordshire Police for 27 years and she provides support to families, including any needed during court cases.

The mother-of-three said: "Having been to hundreds of RTCs [road traffic collisions] that are fatal and many speeding incidents, I can categorically say it does kill.

"Those that say it doesn't, come and say that to the family of someone who has been killed by a speeding motorist.

"Everyone thinks it won't happen to them, or their family, and then I knock on their door.

"If you're a passenger in a car and you're uncomfortable, ask them to slow down.

"I'd rather tell someone to slow down than have to go to their parents and say their child is dead."

PC Sparkes was FLO for Rachael and Chris Thorold, who lost their five-month-old son Louis, when he was hit on the pavement of the A10 near Cambridge, in 2021, although that was not a speeding-related collision.

The family said she "works selflessly every day to help families and victims".

Special action will take place until 30 October encouraging people to stick to the speed limit, including officers in Cambridgeshire patrolling accident hotspots a carrying out speed checks.